Well, maybe she didn't (she being Be-Be Adams). And she didn't (she being Sean Gamble). Nor did she (she being Marisa Francovich). But we're pretty sure at least one she (and perhaps a smoking-jacketed he) wore blue velvet at the fifth annual Blue Tie Ball — to benefit University of Nevada, Reno student-athletes — held last week at the Peppermill. I mean, on how many other occasions is blue velvet considered fashion-forward and not a fashion fumble?

(For the record, the Beebs wore a slinky midnight blue number daringly gathered into a knot at the midriff, Sean opted for spangly sparkly midnight blue and Marisa said the hell with blue and went with basic black because, you know, she can.)

When we attended this event a few years ago on about five minutes' notice to help a friend fill an (unexpectedly) empty seat — an invitation that initially felt more like a diss than hospitality, but no worries, we blew out the bar on our friend's dime — anyway, we didn't have anything blue to wear.

OK, we had, like, an electric blue Lacoste polo or something, and maybe a teal cashmere sweater that looked way too Miami in the '80s, but not anything blue the organizers of the ball would have considered sartorially compliant or acceptable. So, as Marisa would do a few years later, we wore basic black. But, wishing to get into the spirit of things, we went out to the Terrace Lounge, ordered a Papa Smurf cocktail and carried it around. That was our bit of blue.

Perfect polenta

This past week has been fairly quiet, eventwise, other than the Blue Tie Ball, but that doesn't mean we haven't been socializing. Far from it.

We ran into David Stec, sales director of Wirtz Beverage Nevada, at the Grill at Quail Corners. He sat down with us for a quick bite and a couple of glasses of wine. The restaurant, by the way, was packed packed packed on a Monday night. Monday is typically a slow night at restaurants, even in the best of times, but the Grill has always seemed to defy received industry wisdom. David will soon be winging his way to Europe where, we trust, he'll have some fine, fine pours. One of the perks of the business.

And speaking of packed: Johnny's Ristorante Italiano is another Reno mainstay that never seems to have an off night. Just drive by its West Fourth Street spot, at the top of the rise, to see for yourself. The other evening, we stopped by for a nosh and some fumé with Ashley Brune, who just launched her own public relations firm, Ashley Brune Communications (if you need top-notch PR, contact her at AshleyBrune@gmail.com).

Chef and family owner Louis Cassinari sent out some of the best polenta — light yet substantial, creamy yet firm enough — that we've had in years. The polenta sandwiched roasty slices of grilled eggplant. Our colleague, Laura Longero, has long praised this dish, and now we know why.

Healthful noodles

We ran into Coleen Cannan of LuLou's at 168 Asian Market the other afternoon. "This is the best place," Coleen said, and we more than agree. We were shopping for peanut sauce (no, we don't make that from scratch, sorry to say; Annie Chun does it much better and easier), ketjap manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce; the absolute best on almost anything), a few bowls for photo shoots and shirataki noodles.

What's that, you say? Shirataki noodles are a low-carb, low-calorie, often very low-gluten (but don't hold me to that; this is a social column, not the nutrition page) traditional Japanese noodle made from the konjac yam (also known, poetically, as the elephant yam or voodoo lily).

The noodles are typically packaged in liquid and sold from the refrigerated case. The liquid has an odd odor, so the noodles are rinsed and cooked.

Like tofu, they taste of nothing but play foil to a host of flavors. And they offer classic noodle texture and satisfaction. We're supposed to be watching our carbs, so shirataki noodles have been a godsend. Because for us, life without noodles would be unthinkable.

Johnathan L. Wright is the food and drink editor of RGJ Media. Join him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RGJTaste, on Twitter @RGJTaste and at www.RGJ.com/life/food-drink.